


I See You and You See Me

by psychotic_fangirl369



Category: Merlin (TV)
Genre: Angst with a Happy Ending, Arthur Finds Out About Merlin's Magic (Merlin), Confused Arthur Pendragon (Merlin), Crying, Evil Morgana (Merlin), Happy Ending, Hugs, Hurt Merlin (Merlin), Injury, M/M, Magic Revealed, Merlin Needs a Hug (Merlin), Merlin's Magic Revealed (Merlin), Morgana Needs a Hug (Merlin), POV Arthur, Protective Arthur, Redeemed Morgana (Merlin), Scared Merlin (Merlin), because I love it when Merlin rants, morgana becomes good, ranting merlin
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-01-07
Updated: 2021-01-07
Packaged: 2021-03-18 03:02:31
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,734
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28611009
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/psychotic_fangirl369/pseuds/psychotic_fangirl369
Summary: "But then Arthur had noticed the injuries. It was small, at first. He saw a cut on Merlin’s arm. Like one made by a dagger. When Arthur had asked Merlin about it, his servant had stuttered and shrugged and said he’d cut himself while cleaning Arthur’s sword and then deftly changed the topic. Arthur noticed more and more after that. A fading bruise on Merlin’s neck. A limp. A wince here and there, as though his ribs pained him. And every time Arthur asked, Merlin made up some unbelievable excuse and changed the subject.Arthur would not accept that.Everyone was entitled to their privacy. But not if said privacy was getting them injured."Arthur notices Merlin keeps getting injured and decides to follow him. What he doesn't expect is to see Merlin transform into Dragoon the Great, confront Morgana in the middle of the forest and to find out his friend and servant is actually the most powerful sorcerer to ever live.
Relationships: Merlin & Arthur Pendragon (Merlin), Merlin/Arthur Pendragon (Merlin)
Comments: 14
Kudos: 431





	I See You and You See Me

**Author's Note:**

> Hi everyone! I hope you enjoy this.

Contrary to what Merlin thought, Arthur wasn’t stupid. He knew that Merlin wasn’t running off to the tavern or gathering herbs or whatever sorry excuse Gaius seemed to come up with. And whilst it bothered him not to know what his manservant and friend was up to, he had accepted it. Everyone was entitled to their privacy. He just wished Merlin’s didn’t come with him skiving off his job at every moment he got.

But then Arthur had noticed the injuries. It was small, at first. He saw a cut on Merlin’s arm. Like one made by a dagger. When Arthur had asked Merlin about it, his servant had stuttered and shrugged and said he’d cut himself while cleaning Arthur’s sword and then deftly changed the topic. Arthur noticed more and more after that. A fading bruise on Merlin’s neck. A limp. A wince here and there, as though his ribs pained him. And every time Arthur asked, Merlin made up some unbelievable excuse and changed the subject.

Arthur would not accept that.

Everyone was entitled to their privacy. But not if said privacy was getting them injured. Merlin was his friend. His _best friend,_ even though he’d never admit it out loud. He cared about the idiot, useless as he was. And that was just it – Merlin _wasn’t_ useless. Oh, he was always late and he was insolent and bratty and refused to talk to Arthur as a servant ought to. He’d give Arthur orders even though “I’m the King, Merlin, not you!” and he’d more often than not vanish, leaving another servant to do his chores. But, in his own way, Merlin was the best servant Arthur had ever had. His bath was always warm. His food was, too. He’d give Arthur the odd burst of wise advice and he was braver than any knight. He’d come with Arthur on every quest, even though, as a servant, Merlin really had no business being there, and he was loyal to a fault. And he was Arthur’s friend. And sometimes, a king needed a friend. Not a perfect servant, like _George._

And so, if Merlin’s privacy was doing him harm – and it was, if the injuries Arthur was noticing were anything to go by – then Arthur was jolly well going to find out where Merlin snuck off too and who was hurting his manservant. Because _no one_ hurt Merlin and got away with it.

And so, that night, after Merlin had said goodnight to Arthur, Arthur clambered out of bed, pulled on his breachers and cloak and followed after Merlin with his sword firmly against his side, ready to harm anyone who hurt his friend. Merlin made his way out into the forest and Arthur followed, stealthy and silent because unlike Merlin, he knew how to pass by unnoticed. They stop just outside a clearing and Arthur watches in confusion as Merlin ducks behind a tree, seeming to be waiting for something. A moment later, Morgana enters the clearing. Arthur felt his heart stop. What was going on? Why was Morgana here? How did Merlin know Morgana would be here? Arthur pressed himself further into his hiding spot. He could not let Morgana spot him. She was trying to kill him, after all, and this would be an easy opportunity.

Then Arthur noticed the small, teenage girl Morgana was dragging along behind her.

“Hush, my dear,” Morgana said as the teenage girl sniffled and cried.

Morgana stopped walking and turned to the girl, smiling at her. It made Arthur sick to see it. Morgana’s smiles had once been kind and compassionate. Now she looked mad and cruel.

“Your job is done. You got a note to Emrys for me, telling him to meet me here. He is a sentimental old fool and would never let an innocent druid girl die. As soon as Emrys shows up, I will let you go. I have no quarrel with you.”

A druid girl. Morgana was using druids as leverage? Oh, how far she had fallen. Then Arthur pursed his lips. Who was this Emrys? And why did Morgana want him? Arthur glanced over to where Merlin was hiding and did a double take. Instead of his idiotic manservant, there stood Dragoon, the sorcerer who killed his father. Arthur’s hand reached for his sword, but then he paused, because _where was Merlin_ and _what the hell was going on?_

Dragoon stepped out from his spot behind the tree and walked into the clearing. The moon was full and bright and shone down and the three magic users. Arthur swallowed down the panic and tried to force his mind off Merlin’s disappearance. He had a sneaking suspicion he knew where Merlin had gone, but he didn’t want to believe it.

_Have we met? Your eyes. I’ve seen you before._

Arthur shook his head. No. It couldn’t be. _No._

Morgana laughed darkly. “Emrys,” she said.

Was this Dragoon Emrys?

“You came.” Morgana smiled and shoved the druid girl. “Go. Run. And don’t come back.”

The druid girl cast Dragoon – Emrys? Merlin? – a look and ran.

“Now then, Emrys. What am I going to do with you?” Morgana drawled, her eyes glinting.

“Nothing,” Emrys spat. “We both know I’m destined to kill you, Morgana Pendragon.”  
And okay, what? Arthur felt like he was struggling to breathe. This Dragoon-Emrys-maybe-possibly-Merlin person was destined to _kill Morgana?_

“Why won’t you just leave, witch?” Emrys said. “You’ve caused enough harm.”

“Still sour that I killed Uther?” Morgana taunted.

Arthur frowned. Morgana didn’t kill his father, Dragoon did. Right?

“If it wasn’t for that charm I had Agravaine slip around Uther’s neck, your healing spell would have worked,” Morgana sneered. “How does it feel to know that I beat you?”

Arthur felt his insides turn cold. Merlin had been telling the truth. Agravaine was the traitor. And Emrys would have been able to save his father if his uncle hadn’t helped prevent the magic from working. Arthur thought he was going to throw up.

“Enough chit chat. Let’s get on with this, please. Tell me your real name,” Morgana demanded.

“Lovely manners,” Emrys said. “Remembering your please and thank you’s. I do admire that.”  
Morgana gnashed her teeth and threw out her hand. Her eyes flashed gold as she yelled out a spell and Emrys was thrown back against a tree. The impact was deafening and Arthur winced in sympathy. But Emrys simply looked up and without a word the trees around them ducked their branches and wrapped around Morgana, restraining her. She shrieked and screamed and tried to get away but the branches only tightened their grip on her, winding around her entire body like a cocoon until only her head was visible. Emrys stumbled to his feet and looked her in the eye.

“I do not wish to hurt you, Morgana,” and he sounded like he meant it.

“You are weak!” Morgana spat. “Kill me! Go on, Emrys! Do what you are destined to do and _kill_ me!”

Emrys looked at her and Arthur held his breath, waiting to see what would happen next. Then Emrys raised a hand and the branches slowly unwound themselves, dropping Morgana to the ground with a thud.

Emrys turned and started to walk away. Morgana screamed.

“You do not get to walk away from me! You are a traitor to our kind! You protect Arthur Pendragon when he is nothing but a dictator who executes those who practise magic! If he ever got his hands on you, he would kill you! And yet you defend him. You protect him and kill magic users to do so! You are a monster.”

Emrys had stopped walking when Morgana started to speak. Arthur watches as a myriad of emotions flittered across his face. But mostly, Emrys looked tired. He looked _exhausted_ , as though he had the weight of the world on his shoulders. And Arthur felt sorry for him.

Emrys turned back to Morgana. “You call me a monster, and yet you are the monster, Morgana. And I blame myself for that. Every day, I blame myself for what you have become.”

Morgana shakily stood to her feet, the confusion on her face reflecting the emotions Arthur was feeling.

“You wish to know who I am,” Emrys said. “Then I will show you.” Emrys reached into his pocket and pulled out a small potion. He drank it down, put the bottle back in his pocket and began to pull the red gown over his head. When he emerged from under it and tossed it to the side, Arthur felt his breath catch in his throat because his suspicions had been confirmed. There, looking shaky and tired and determined, was Merlin. The betrayal Arthur felt caused his knees to buckle and he only just managed to catch himself as he fell to his knees on the forest floor. He was shaking. He wanted to close his eyes, to look away, but he couldn’t. He could not tear his gaze from Merlin – his manservant, his friend, his loyal idiot of a best friend – who was a sorcerer. Who was Dragoon the Great. Who was this Emrys person. Arthur felt physically in pain because Merlin had kept this a secret all this time. All these years. Logically, Arthur knew why Merlin couldn’t tell him. He understood that. He got it. But on an emotional level, the hurt at being lied to and deceived was too much. He knew Merlin wasn’t evil. Morgana herself had just accused Merlin of protecting Arthur and betraying his own kind to do so. And was this why Merlin was always injured? Was he off battling unknown threats in order to protect Arthur? To protect Camelot?

“You!” Morgana yelled, her voice cutting through his thoughts. “You have magic! You are Emrys, the most powerful sorcerer to ever live!”

Merlin was _what?_

Merlin stared at her with a hard expression. “Emrys is what the druids call me. Although I prefer to go by my actual name, which is Merlin, if you remember.”

And wasn’t that just so Merlin. To be cheeky and snarky, even in the face of peril.

“You have been by Arthur’s side all this time,” Morgana said in realization. “I told you I had magic! Years ago, before any of this, I told you I had magic and you did nothing to help me. You poisoned me!”

“You were helping Morgause!” Merlin shouted back. “I _had_ to poison you because it was the only way to stop the sleeping spell. Besides, I knew your sister would save you!”

“That’s not the point, Merlin! You betrayed me!”

Merlin balled his hands into fists. “No! You betrayed us! You betrayed Arthur and Camelot and magic when you decided to use it for evil! You let your fear corrupt you and cloud your judgment, just like Uther!”

Morgana’s face went red. “You know nothing of fear,” she said in a cold voice. “I was the kings ward and I started being able to do magic. You know nothing of the fear I felt.”

At that, Merlin let out a sharp, disbelieving laugh. “ _I know nothing of fear_? No, Morgana, _you_ are the one who doesn’t understand fear. You developed your magic when you were practically an adult. I didn’t. The first time I did magic, I was only a few weeks old. My mother was petrified! How was she supposed to stop a baby, who couldn’t talk or understand what she was saying, from doing magic? How was she supposed to keep it a secret? I wasn’t allowed to leave my home until I was 5 years old. The first time I stepped outside was after my fifth birthday, when I was finally able to fractionally control my magic. But those first five years I spent in my home with my mother I felt nothing but fear. I was constantly told not to use my magic, that if anyone knew they would kill me. I was a child, Morgana, and I already knew my very existence was _wrong._ That I was wrong and strange and dangerous and could possibly be killed at any moment if I didn’t manage to control myself. When I grew older, I knew that no one could ever know what I was. I spent my entire childhood lying and hiding and being petrified that I would lose control and someone would find out and I would be _executed_. When I was 10, I went to a nearby town for a market trade and a little girl was caught using magic to sort the fruit. She wasn’t hurting anyone, but she was using magic. She was only 11 or 12. And the towns folk built a pyre, dragged her over to it and _burnt her alive_. I had to watch, I had to listen to her screams and I knew that if anyone ever found out that that would be _me._ And my magic just kept on getting more and more powerful. You have no idea how much magic I have inside of me. I am literally a power source of magic and it burns beneath my skin every second of every day. It kept getting stronger and stronger and so my mother thought I should go and stay with Gaius so that he could help me grasp better control. The only thing I had to do was keep my head down so that no one would find out about me. But then I had to go and pick a fight with Arthur and got myself on the bloody Prince of Camelot’s radar and I was more scared than I had ever been in my life. Then I went and saved the prats life – with magic, might I add – and Uther went and made me _his manservant._ The only thing someone like me was supposed to do was stay as far away from Uther and Arthur as possible and suddenly I was Arthur’s personal servant and I was so, so scared. I thought for sure that I would be dead within a week. But I wasn’t. And instead, Arthur started to become my friend. And all the while, magical threats or assassination attempts or murderers or witches kept trying to hurt Arthur and instead of letting them, I chose to protect him. Because I believed in him and the king he would one day be. Because he was my friend. Because I cared about him. And because that bloody dragon wouldn’t stop going on and on about destiny. And then that fear changed to other things. Like fear of Arthur hating me because I had to spend every day listening to him talk about how _evil_ magic is and how those with magic have to be killed and how there is no room for sorcery in Camelot and it hurt, Morgana. It hurt and I was so scared and I’m still so scared. All the time. Every second of the day. But I’ll tell you one more thing, Morgana. I have _never_ let that fear make me turn against those I love. I have never let that fear corrupt me and turn me into a monster. I have never let that fear make me use my magic for bad. I have only ever let that fear make me more determined than ever to use my magic for good and to protect and to heal so that I can prove to myself that _they are all wrong._ ”

Merlin finally stopped talking. He stood there, breathing loudly and heavily. Arthur stared at him. To have felt such fear all his life… how was Merlin so cheery and happy when he was around Arthur? Was it an act? A cover? Arthur felt even more sick. It wasn’t right. Merlin should never have had to feel like that. Merlin should feel safe and loved and free. He didn’t deserve this. He didn’t deserve to live in constant fear of execution. To have suffered like this. All Arthur wanted to do was pull his best friend into a hug and tell him he was safe. That he would always be safe, now that Arthur was king.

“I know fear, Morgana,” Merlin whispered. “Which is why I understand why you have done what you have done. I just wish that you could see that there is another way.”

Arthur held his breath. He felt wetness on his face and he reached up a hand to wipe at his cheeks, startled to realize he was crying. He was actually crying because he felt so agonizingly retched over how mistreated Merlin had been his entire life. He closed his eyes for a brief moment, before reopening them and focusing on Merlin and Morgana.

“It’s too late for me,” Morgana whispered back. Her face was pale and she looked young and unsure. “After all I have done… and Arthur knows of my magic, unlike yours. He would never welcome me back.”

Merlin’s eyes seemed to light up as he realized that Morgana seemed to actually be considering what he had said. Arthur could feel his own heart pattering frantically as he thought that maybe he could get his sister back.

“He would,” Merlin said earnestly. “Arthur would accept you. He would accept me. He’s a good man. The best man.” He said it almost reverently and it made Arthur flush. “Arthur would help you, Morgana,” Merlin continued, taking a step towards her. “I know he would. He would be glad for you to come home and he would forgive you everything.”

“If you really believe that’s true, why haven’t you told him about your magic?” Morgana asked, and she didn’t sound angry or judgmental, merely curious.

Arthur would never admit that he was desperate to hear the answer to Morgana’s question.

“I was going to,” Merlin confessed quietly. “I didn’t want to say anything while Uther was alive. I didn’t want to make Arthur choose between his father and his laws, and me. But then Uther died and I was the one who unintentionally killed him, thanks to _you_. And so I couldn’t. It wasn’t that I didn’t think Arthur would accept my magic. But I knew I would have to tell him that I was Dragoon. And I didn’t want to. Not so soon after Uther’s death.”

And… that made sense. A heaviness in Arthur’s chest slowly started to ease. Merlin _had_ trusted him. He just hadn’t wanted to upset or hurt Arthur with the truth so soon after his father had died at Merlin’s hands, even if it was unintentional. Arthur felt a small smile twitch at his lips. That was so _Merlin_. Looking out for Arthur’s wellbeing instead of his own.

“I killed Uther,” Morgana said in a small voice. “Arthur won’t forgive that.”

And Arthur knew it was time to make his presence known. He stood up, took a deep breath and stepped out into the clearing.

“I forgive you,” he said, his voice coming out stronger than he felt.

Merlin and Morgana both jumped at the sound of his voice and turned to face him.

“Arthur-“ Merlin started.

Arthur ignored him, striding straight towards Merlin and wrapping his arms around him. Merlin squeaked and trembled, before slowly hugging Arthur back. Then they pulled apart and stood, staring at each other.

“How long were you standing there?” Merlin asked shakily.

Arthur smiled. He reached up and pressed his palm to Merlin’s cheek. “The entire time.” He leant in and pressed a brief, chaste kiss to Merlin’s lips. “You see, I noticed my idiotic manservant lying about going to the tavern. I also noticed that he constantly seemed to be injured. So I thought I would follow him. Imagine my surprise when I saw him transform into that bloody old sorcerer who made me carry him on my back.” Arthur raised his eyebrow at Merlin, who swallowed hard and shifted on his feet. Arthur stepped back and looked towards his sister. She looked pale and frightened, but there was determination in her eyes. “I saw everything. I heard everything,” Arthur continued. “And if you wish to return to Camelot, then you may. I will pardon you of your crimes, Morgana.”

She gasped. The action was silent, but her parted lips gave her away. “But everyone knows about my magic,” she pointed out.

Arthur left Merlin to walk towards her. Slowly, so as not to startle her, he reached out and took her hand in his. He squeezed it once, firmly.

“We were once brother and sister,” he said to her. “And I failed you. I will not do so again. No one should ever have to live with the fear I heard Merlin describing. He should never have had to experience such terror and neither should you and I promise you that neither of you,” he continued, keeping his hand in Morgana’s as he looked over at Merlin, whose eyes were shining with unshed tears, “will ever have to experience such fear again. I will lift the ban on magic.”

He could feel Morgana trembling and Merlin gasped loudly, openly gawking at him. 

“I will lift the ban on magic,” he repeated firmly. “It won’t happen overnight and there will have to be laws to control and punish the misuse of magic. But it will happen and both of you will be safe. And free.”

Then Morgana did something she very rarely did. She threw herself at him, buried her head in his chest and started to cry. Arthur hugged her back tightly, meeting Merlin’s gaze and beckoning him over. When Merlin was close enough, Arthur pulled him into the hug and the three of them clung to each other, crying.

It wouldn’t be easy. And there would be resistance. But Arthur vowed that no matter what it took, he would fulfil his promises to the two most important people in his life. The path before them was clear and for the first time since becoming king, Arthur felt he had finally discovered his destiny.

Far away in the mountains, the Great Dragon stirred as he felt century old prophecies slowly start to fade and decay around him. Instead, images of a great king ruling side by side with a sorcerer and sorceress began to fill his mind. Kilgharrah closed his eyes and smiled. Destiny had been defied and all was well in Albion. 

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks for reading!


End file.
